Chapter 6

Chapter 6

After the company dinner, I settled into the team without any particular incident.

Jung Dahyun, who had taken it upon herself to be my mentor, meticulously taught me everything a public service Hunter needed to know.

As with any job, being a Hunter dedicated to villains didn't mean I only dealt with villains.

There were all sorts of discussions—ways to suppress villain activity as much as possible, measures to strengthen public safety, keeping monsters from approaching the city both inside and out. On top of that, I had to know how to read all kinds of paperwork and make sure cooperation between departments flowed organically.

Add to that the various reconnaissance assets, and the result was a system where, if an incident occurred in Seoul, nearby departments were notified within five minutes and a response was dispatched within thirty minutes.

It was a system designed to protect the city's public safety, though it had its inefficiencies. If the goal had been to 'eliminate' villains rather than 'arrest' them, the efficiency would have been vastly higher.

"…Therefore, establishing a cooperative framework with other departments is the most important thing."

Jung Dahyun emphasized cooperation several times.

"But doesn't cooperation mean slower response times?"

"Exactly. That's why on-site judgment matters."

The ones who could make that judgment were public service Hunters. That was what 'government authority' had been granted to them for.

The presence or absence of that authority was what created the difference between Hunters and villains.

I had no intention of seeking cooperation from other departments the way Jung Dahyun urged. A villain was something that needed to be erased, and from a public service Hunter's standpoint—where damage had to be minimized—speed was everything.

This was probably the ordinary mindset of a public service Hunter protecting citizens.

And I quite liked that a single exam determined whether you were qualified or not.

"So, shall we go get lunch?"

I checked the time—it was lunch hour. I went outside with Jung Dahyun and headed to a home-style diner a little ways from the National Guard Bureau. The mushroom soybean paste stew there was excellent, so I'd been eating there all week.

"Establishing a system is all well and good, but isn't it better to catch villains on the front lines?"

"That's easier said than done."

"And if it's not easy?"

"It means a villain hiding in the city is more cunning than you can imagine."

"…"

Honestly, I couldn't understand what she meant.

Jung Dahyun smiled faintly at my expression.

"You'll find out soon enough."

* * *

If I spent my work hours adapting to the life of a public service Hunter, then after clocking out, I supervised Yunhee's training.

It wasn't because she was my sister—she was simply born with talent.

Her agile movements, her affinity for Force, her adaptability and control—all ranked at the top.

The training was harsh enough that she grumbled about how hard it was, but she gritted her teeth and endured when she saw her skills improving.

The more you push someone, the more they improve—so it was worth pushing. And maybe because she was my little sister, I felt a special enthusiasm for working her hard.

Watching her, I was reminded that the person who had once blocked Yunhee's path forward had been me.

She was the kind of sister who was loved by our parents and her friends alike—bold, with no grudges or lingering bitterness.

Because of me, her dreams had been shattered, and she'd ended up in a position where she'd be watched for the rest of her life. And all I'd ever done was watch her from a distance now and then.

I never had the courage to face her—but what if I had?

"She'd probably just nag me a bit? Telling me I couldn't even guide my hopeless older brother properly and turned him into a villain. 'The best decision of my life was making you take the public service Hunter exam.'"

That was her answer when I once asked what she'd say if I ever became a villain.

"Don't you dare even think about doing villain stuff. Stick right next to Dahyun unnie! That way you'd at least make it to the middle, wouldn't you?"

It seemed she trusted Jung Dahyun more than me. But when did she start calling her 'unnie'? The thought flickered past, but I didn't dig any further.

"Thanks for looking out for me, little sister."

"W-wait! Why are you smiling so scary?! Stay back!"

"Who's bullying you? I'm saying let's train. A fun training session."

"What's fun about training?! Mom! This brother is trying to catch me!"

She struggled, calling for our parents who were in the countryside, but before long she quieted down.

When you're exhausted enough, you don't even have the energy to put up a fuss.

* * *

Level measurement.

It's a process every Hunter must go through.

Level is the measure of power, and high-level Awakened are evaluated and treated as major national assets.

Awakened active on the front lines are Level 4–5; Levels 6–7 are called high-ranking Awakened, and Level 8 is called a Transcendent Awakened.

Level 8 Awakened in particular are the strongest assets in existence—no country besides the United States has more than ten of them.

South Korea is currently a nation with four officially recognized Level 8 Awakened.

With its systematic training programs and the emergence of outstanding prospects, it's counted among the world's leading Awakened powers.

That's why those who cultivate talent don't believe in the existence of 'geniuses who appear like comets.' True geniuses reveal their talent thoroughly from childhood and forge that talent through relentless honing.

But today, that common sense was shattered. Jung Juho, his face stiff, looked at Jung Dahyun.

"…Did you know?"

"I didn't know it would be this much either."

"Level 7—can you believe it?"

"I have to."

"Yeah. I have to. The measurement device doesn't lie."

Level measurement doesn't represent all combat power. But it's the most widely known method and boasts a high accuracy rate.

In today's measurement, Choi Junho proved Level 7.

They checked several more times with different devices, thinking it might be an error, but the result was the same.

Level 7 on the first measurement after awakening. A growth process with no logical explanation. And then applying as a public service Hunter.

There wasn't a single thing that made sense from start to finish.

If someone was Level 7 in their mid-twenties, there would be guilds lining up to drag him in by the roots.

"What kind of person is this Choi Junho you've seen?"

"He's like a blank canvas."

"A blank canvas?"

"Yes, a pure white canvas. He's innocent to a degree that doesn't match his age."

There was a somewhat worn-down feeling to him too, but she didn't bother mentioning it.

Choi Junho was someone who had to be handled carefully. The more you pointed out his somewhat extreme side and tried to restrain him, the more he'd push back as a reaction.

One wrong move, and humanity might find itself facing a colossal disaster unlike anything it had ever encountered.

That was why Jung Dahyun chose to embrace Choi Junho.

"But a canvas is white."

"Meaning he can be dyed."

"Yes. He's dangerous."

Someone who could become a faithful public service Hunter—but who, with one wrong turn, could become a villain more dangerous than anyone.

That was the Choi Junho Jung Dahyun saw.

"I need to be by his side."

"I trust you, but the fact that he has no past bothers me."

"We can learn about it over time. If he had some other agenda, he wouldn't have approached us like this."

"I suppose so. Understood. For the time being, you keep an eye on him."

Jung Juho tried to end the conversation there, but Jung Dahyun pointed out something that could easily be overlooked.

"And there's one more thing you should know."

"What is it?"

"The level measurement device… it can only measure up to Level 7."

"…Don't tell me. No, surely not."

Jung Juho shook his head. But goosebumps were prickling up his arms.

Measuring Level 8 requires the device located at the central government. With an ordinary device, even a Level 8 Awakened reads as Level 7.

Jung Dahyun's guess was absurd. But it was also something that had to be kept in mind.

"Surely not?"

"I'm just putting it out there for now."

"For now, this will take time. We'll report it up the chain and keep his level under wraps for the time being."

"Yes."

* * *

Two weeks after becoming a public service Hunter.

I received the handover of internal duties and completed my level measurement.

My level was 7. After internal discussion, it was decided that my public level would be listed as 5.

I didn't particularly care about levels, but it was somewhat puzzling that it differed from the level I'd been evaluated at in my past life.

In my past life, I'd seen plenty of high-level villains who went around bragging about their levels getting their heads blown off by lower-level villains.

That's why I don't take levels at face value. Isn't it more accurate to think of it as a rough measure of the output of power I can exert?

Today I went outside with Jung Dahyun. Finally, fieldwork.

She said we couldn't afford to let our guard down, so we even had spicy stir-fried pork for lunch instead of soybean paste stew—I couldn't tell what difference that made, but the solemn atmosphere came through clearly enough.

"Last time you asked if it wouldn't be better to catch more villains on the front lines, right?"

"Yes."

"We don't avoid doing it because we don't know how."

"Then?"

"We can't. More precisely, we can't catch them."

Can't catch villains? That was hard to understand.

"Compared to the size of the city, the number of Awakened dedicated to villains is small. Most are preoccupied with hunting monsters and busy calculating the value of byproducts. This city that looks so peaceful is actually full of holes, like Swiss cheese."

I nodded. The afterimages of the Awakened who had persistently chased me when I was a villain were vivid, but there probably hadn't been enough manpower to cover even the low-tier villains.

I was insane enough to kill openly, but no villain went around reeking of blood with Awakened staring them down everywhere.

"The numbers are short, but the biggest problem is this."

Jung Dahyun grabbed her cheek and stretched it.

"Fake Face?"

"That's right."

Fake Face, called fake faces, are similar to human-skin masks—disguise tools made from processing the hide of humanoid monsters. They're a staple item for villains. They can't be used for long due to toxicity, but within the city, they're useful.

"The number of Awakened is insufficient and villains go around hiding their identities. That's why even with cooperation between teams, we inevitably focus on cleanup rather than prevention."

"Can't Fake Face be detected?"

"You'd need facial recognition at close range. But that's—"

"Backlash would be fierce."

"There's public resistance to Awakened."

Awakened are objects of admiration, but on the other hand, they're like a newly emerged class. Citizens envy their powerful abilities, wealth, honor, and influence.

But the underlying inferiority complex is the problem.

Ordinary citizens wanted Awakened kept under control, and they were wary of a privileged class emerging composed solely of them.

"So our goal is to use a systematic network to suppress villain incidents as quickly as possible when they happen. That's the best we can do."

"I have a question. Official Jung, what's more important to you—eliminating villains or keeping citizens safe?"

"Keeping citizens safe."

"Even if the villains who survive become disasters in the future?"

"…What I felt facing reality was that you can't have everything. If I can't have both, then citizen safety comes first."

Her straight eyes turned to me. The same eyes I'd seen in my past life. The eyes she'd had until she died by my hand.

I don't dislike people who try to adapt to reality without giving up their convictions.

"I believe that capturing a single villain is the path to keeping a hundred citizens safe. That belief hasn't changed."

"Junho, your thinking could end up hurting innocent people."

"Then I'll apologize. Isn't that better than being too afraid of side effects to get a vaccination? For example—take that person walking over there right now."

"What?"

I walked toward the target my senses had locked onto.

"W-what?!"

The ordinary-looking man who'd been standing there looked startled at me, but instead of answering, I reached out and grabbed his face.

Riiip!

His ordinary face shifted into a menacing one covered in scars.

"This is how you find a villain."